Slow Down, Read This

Mental and physical health is rapidly declining around the world — here I explain what you should do

“For I reckon that the sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" — Romans 8:18

Never in recent memory has taking care of your health been as important as it has become since the onset of the pandemic of 2020.

The effects of isolation have been harsh. People (including me) don’t know what to do- Where can we go? Who can we see? The rules are changing all of the time, and with each change comes a phase of readjustment. Humans were not made for that.

The early humans roamed the land in tribes made up of their relatives and children in search of food and doing communal activities — they were hyperactive and free.

Early native people most certainly weren’t couped-up awaiting their fate to be dictated by governments or anyone else for that matter.

It’s sad that we as a modern-day society have reached that point. Rather than most of us being hyperactive and free, many people have set aside their liberties in the hope of being saved by their government from a virus.

The odds of any of us catching the virus are non-determinable. We know roughly how many people have contracted COVID-19, but scientists and governments are still at odds as to how it spreads between individuals. There are of course recommendations such as face masks and social-distancing that a lot of people seem to be using and abiding by — however, thousands are still contracting the virus every day around the world.

I firmly believe that the trick to maintaining good health and safe-guarding yourself and family with everything going on is to slow down and start ignoring the COVID-19 hype. Yes, it is a legitimate concern and I can understand why the media are focusing on it. But if you focus on the media, you aren’t focusing on yourself. Therein lies most of the problem — coronavirus/COVID-19 is not a spectator sport, but there seems to be fans.

Breakout

Millions of people are tracking Coronavirus as though it’s the be-all and end-all. We know that in certain parts of the world, particularly states such as Texas in the US and parts of Italy that it’s very serious.

However, the curiosity factor into how many people are getting sick or have passed away from COVID-19 is somewhat of a sick global obsession. Below are the latest trends from Google Trends relating to the search “coronavirus” as an example:

Personally, I was impressed by what appears to be elements of concern and also gratefulness towards those on the front lines. What I didn’t like was the top related search being coronavirus “update" (indicates excessive curiosity) and the word/website “Worldometers". That name really doesn’t resonate well with me — what people are actually searching for is a meter for sickness and death. Until it becomes them or their families that others are searching for as statistics…

Don’t Become Side-Statistics

Perhaps the most befuddling aspect of this crisis is the impact on mental and physical heath. All we can really determine at this stage is that these stats are not/will not be good! Crisis helplines are all taking record numbers of calls from people who aren’t feeling well for a variety of reasons. The effects of the pandemic stretch beyond health also to the personal finance, employment and housing sectors…all BAD right now!

In most parts of the world, exercise is still permitted outdoors, though limited — from regular visits to parks, many families now find playgrounds taped-off and are limited to laps around the streets locally on foot or bicycles. The impact on physical health is absolutely HUGE on a broad scale! Less calories burned, means more negative health implications — it really is as simple as that. That said, working together with your family to reduce your daily sugar and fat intake, getting the right amount of vitamins and minerals into your diet, and finding an exercise routine that works best, is all people can really can do to maintain good physical health at this point going forward.

By moving to what is hopefully a slower pace of life for many in iso, there’s still hope that a lot more people learn to address their mental health issues. Governments here in Australia have been quite generous financially and there’s a multitude of support services available in this country among others.

Every human mind, however, is very complex and different. Often we choose the ‘100 things at once' approach, when instead the ‘focus on just one thing' doctor’s recommend is better for us. Sometimes the latter is not possible for whatever reason and we bring upon ourselves anxiety or in some cases depression from struggling over a period of time.

Instead of worrying about getting sick from coronavirus, every human being should be worried about the side-effects of the pandemic. In my opinion, those are more real and likely to hit us than COVID-19.

I would strongly recommend staying in touch with family and friends as much as possible over the phone and through video chat apps such as WhatsApp, Zoom and Houseparty — it certainly isn’t the same, but losing touch with loved ones will ultimately make you feel miserable.

I recently started lifting light weights every time I feel my mind slipping. Like today I think I’ve done over 1000 reps! I know it sounds crazy but it’s had a dramatic impact on my focus and motivation. A regular walk or run is also something which always has a positive effect.

Through my experience with my own mental health, one thing I’ve been trying to beat are my inner-demons. Demons are REAL! They love when you sit dormant, eat the wrong foods, binge watch TV, miss sleep and get generally lazy. They get into your head and make everything harder to figure out.

It’s not surprising that the most successful people are often very religious, active and disciplined. They learned how to fight demons!

We must all improve the way we look after ourselves and others, even look to God for guidance if we need help. I can assure you it works, and if we continue to do that, then our lives should pan out just fine.

Conditioning your mind and bodies to be perfectly functional at a slow pace is the best pandemic remedy.